Pros: Tightly integrated, easy to use, pretty interface, multiuse pane, better mail support for Outlook.
Cons: Resource hog! Outlook is prone to crashes, service pack caused more problems then is resolved.
The Bottom Line: Office XP represents a respectable improvement over Office 2000, but resource constraints may hinder your enjoyment of the application.
vemartin's Full Review: Microsoft Office XP Professional Full Version for ...
{continued from Part one}
Authors Note: I decided because of length to split this review into two parts; one covering the software package overall, and one detailing my trials and tribulations (there were many) with the beast. Here now is Part 2.
Problems:
The one thing I am not so impressed by however is the amount of resources needed to run all this fun stuff. I am currently running a 1.3GHz processor with 132MB of RAM, and Windows Me, and that doesn’t seem to be enough; Microsoft has a nasty habit of grossly under-estimating the minimum hardware requirements needed by its applications! Because of the resource constraints under Windows Me (see my review of Windows Me {http://www.epinions.com/cmd-review-133E-17F83A0D-39D76AC5-prod3%7D for further explanation), I have run into serious resource problems which cause the system to slow considerably whenever Outlook downloads new mail from the Internet. So far Outlook seems to be the real resource hog, which for me is regrettable since it is the one Office XP application I use the most; because I have an always on connection I download my mail on a continual basis. I have ordered 512MB of RAM in the hope that the situation will improve. It is due to arrive some time next week, and after I install it I will update this review accordingly.
After I accomplished the initial install of Office XP, I dutifully sauntered out to the Internet in search of the latest Service Pack which I found and proceeded to download and install. I had Outlook 2002 up and running at the time; big mistake. After an hour of waiting for the install process to start, I grew impatient. I did the three finger salute and found to my dismay that the install process had stopped responding. I did an end task, but by then it was too late, the system needed rebooting. So reboot I did.
Once my computer was back up and running, I restarted Outlook only to find that the application was malfunctioning; it was taking on average five minutes to start up, after which time it displayed a message that it could not download my mail from either mailbox because it could not reach the Internet! And to make matters worse, after I clicked okay to make the message go away, none of my applications could access the Internet!
So began a long three hour ordeal in which I tried to reapply the service pack, remove the service pack, and reload Office XP three times, all in an effort to get Outlook 2002 to act right: nothing worked! Finally, out of frustration, desperation, and capitulation, I removed Office XP completely from my system, resigned to go back to Office 2000, only to discover that it was also gone! Sure remnants of Office 2000were still present, but for the most part the application had been removed from my system along with Office XP. Still determined to prevail I reinstalled Office XP, and I am happy to report that Outlook 2002 now downloads my mail in between crashes that is!
That’s right sports fans, the application crashes on average, twice a day! I do not know what to attribute this to: low system resources, not enough RAM (my system currently has 132MB), or incompatibility with Windows Me. Whatever the reason it’s very annoying. I have not experienced this same instability with Word, the other Office XP application I use continually, but I have had problems with Internet Explorer 6.0 crashing and then restarting itself.
In an effort to bring stability back to the system and restore my sanity and peace of mind, I have ordered 512MB of RAM, and went out yesterday and sprung for Windows XP Home Edition. As soon as the RAM gets here (I ordered it on-line from Multiwave), I will install it and Windows XP and report the results.
Final Thoughts:
Outlook not withstanding, I like Office XP. Although I have not put the application completely through it paces, what I have seen so far—again Outlook not withstanding—is impressive. Though the application is a drag on resources, I am hopeful that a considerable increase in RAM and a switch to Windows XP Home Edition will resolve the issue. I like all the little touches Microsoft has thrown in to make life easier overall for me the end-user.
All-n-all I would say Office XP is a worthwhile improvement over Office 2000, and worth the upgrade. But you shouldn’t make the investment in the application unless you are ready to also make an investment in more RAM as well. With the price of RAM the lowest it has ever been the combination of the two might not be such a bad idea. However, if you are satisfied with the performance of your current Office installation, and your current computer system pre-dates the release of Windows 95, Office XP in any flavor might be the right choice for you…
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